New book on Venezuela by Routledge, chapter on Petrocaribe by Rodrigo Acuña

This month Routledge has published a new book on Venezuela titled Democracy, Revolution and Geopolitics in Latin America: Venezuela and the International Politics of Discontent. Edited by Luis Fernando Angosto-Ferrández (Sydney University), I have contributed a chapter on Petrocaribe, the Caribbean and Central American oil alliance established under the government of Hugo Chávez. As a part of its Routledge Studies in Latin American Politics series, this work is a product from a conference originally held at Sydney University in late 2012. Daniel Hellinger from Webster University writes:

Among the many books on Venezuela, this one is unique and to be praised for offering a clear-eyed, balanced assessment of the impact of Hugo Chávez Frías on hemispheric and global relations. It wrestles with thorny issues about the limits and possibilities of revolution in the current geopolitical context, benefitting from fine research on Latin America being undertaken in Australasia.

According to Steve Ellner from Universidad de Oriente in Puerto La Cruz, and a respected long time observer of Venezuelan politics and history:

This volume represents a unique effort to explore the tie-in between struggles within Venezuela in favor of justice and democratic consolidation, on the one hand, and international relations, on the other. Editor Luis Angosto-Ferrández uses a post-structuralist approach to relate symbols and discourse to the initiatives promoting Latin American unity undertaken by President Hugo Chávez. In addition to examining government actions to create a Latin American bloc and the unity of third world countries, several chapters in the book focus on the Venezuelan Indigenous movement and its transnational networks. All eight of the book’s chapters provide a wealth of useful information that illuminates Venezuelan developments as well as continental and North-South relations. The reader may or may not be in agreement with all the authors’ arguments and viewpoints, but will undoubtedly find his/her grasp of the complex transformations currently underway in Venezuela and Latin America significantly enhanced.

For more information about this book, just visit the following webpage Routledge has created.